I Became a Captain of the British Empire

I need to go to the aircraft carrier

The blue sky welcomes us. A cool sleep. A refreshing scent wafting through the wind. It’s definitely the sea you’ve always seen.

But in the cold north, I felt something different from the air. Moderate warmth enveloped every corner of his body.

Now, Repulse is sailing off the coast of New York.

“There are no ships nearby.”

“Even the reconnaissance plane is not reporting.”

“As expected, is everyone moving along the shore?”

Well, it’s 300km off the coastline. Even in this era, there are bombers and torpedo bombers, so I want to avoid sticking to the shore more than necessary. If you have to go in, you have to go in at night.

“When the day is over, I wonder if it would be a good idea to go to the shore for a while… .”

“Then, what would you do if you ran into an enemy fleet like last time?”

Said the captain with a sigh.

“I don’t really know what will happen if something like the previous one happens again.”

“I’m sorry. But wasn’t there a way?”

It was unavoidable. Who knew you’d go well and then suddenly shoot a flare and replay it? Considering that I haven’t heard any gunfire since, I don’t think they saw us…

Anyway, I couldn’t help but be surprised at the time.

“Still, the flyer got out safely.”

From the bridge, I look around and see my comrades spread out. Tiger and Furious slowly follow Repulse…

“Even if someone didn’t call for an emergency.”

… and 2 destroyers. This is all of our repulse flyers.

The commander sighed and continued.

“Why did you give the order to disperse? It was out of the effective range of the flare anyway!”

“Damn it, then what are you going to do with flares?”

I replied in an intimidating way, but to be honest, I had nothing to say.

2 days ago from now.

Immediately after firing flares at an enemy ship, presumably a cruiser, I panicked and gave the order to spread out.

Looking back now, it was a huge mistake. After sunrise, the only allies visible were the Furious. Tiger, destroyer Cuddington, and Active were the last ones I met at the rendezvous point, but the rest of the allies were nowhere to be seen.

As if getting angry at the shabby flyer, the operation officer continued.

“Didn’t all the destroyers fly away? What is this like now?”

“You have two left, man!”

“That’s it!”

“Operator, please stop.”

As the voice rose, the chief judicial officer stepped forward. He intervened in front of the commander and spoke in a heavy voice.

“Isn’t that too rude to the flyer leader?”

The gentle face was hardened like a mangbuseok. Soon, the officer also stopped and shut his mouth. Hesitantly, he corrected his helmet and saluted.

“… Excuse me.”

Eyes cast shadows. Still, since it was the words of NCO Choi Seon-im, it seemed that he could not carelessly ignore them. In terms of age, he’s above me. What’s more, what he just did was absolutely wrong.

“I will pass this time.”

Still, he didn’t complain anymore.

Because my mistake is right. But it’s already past. It is a time when decisions are required rather than regrets.

“Prepare for an operation. Proceed with normal destruction according to the order from the flagship.”

He looked around at the staff of the bridge and said. He then shifted his gaze to the Air Staff.

“Air Staff, let the reconnaissance aircraft search the surrounding waters. Would that be possible?”

“Yes, then we need to adjust our ranks to face the wind for a moment.”

“Don’t do that. There doesn’t seem to be any enemy capital ships around anyway.”

If it is not an aircraft carrier task force, there is no high-speed capital ship in the vicinity. The vast majority of US Navy capital ships are 21 knots. Even if there are other carriers around, you still have to fly them for air defense.

“Look outside and come.”

I left the bridge for a while while the signal went up.

As soon as you go to the observation deck, the cool sea breeze brushes your body. It contrasts with the bright sunlight, indicating that this place is in the south.

I listened to the binoculars while smelling the thick sea. On the deck of the Furious, where aircraft were raised, busy footsteps came and went. Eventually, as the reconnaissance plane took off, the operation officer approached and said.

“Chairman… ?”

“Something?”

He hesitated as if he was struggling, then he carefully lowered his head and whispered in my ear.

“Just before, I was careless. sorry.”

It was a dejected voice, perhaps because it was pointed out a moment ago. I deliberately tilted my head without paying attention.

“Never mind. Just focus on your mission.”

“And I… There is a possibility that our destroyer, which is still falling behind, is following us.”

An officer who speaks as it is. Is this the main point?

“It’s unlikely, but why don’t you wait a little longer for your allies?”

“hmm… .”

Yes, a destroyer… Well, there must be some guys who are wandering around looking for the main unit by now. There is a possibility that even the fallen destroyers will come all the way to New York offshore. Royal Navy destroyers have long range.

“good. Wait one more hour, and if there is no contact, start as is.”

The officer scratching his head as if he couldn’t bear it. But I can’t give you any more deadlines. Anyway, I wasted the whole day yesterday waiting for them. If you stay too long in an area, you risk being attacked by a submarine.

Even if you don’t find us, you can go to the Bermuda base in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean. Anyway, in a few days, our capital ship will also have to go there to refuel. Hopefully we can meet again there.

It was the time when I was looking for Hamyeong, looking at the distant sea.

“port! Lookout report! Unknown aircraft, continuously approaching this vessel! Defense 090! Distance 8,000!”

“Damn, did you get caught? Prepare for anti-air combat!”

When I raised my binoculars in the direction Gyeonshi shouted, I saw a twin-engine biplane bomber flying solidly.

“Is it a bombing?”

“It looks like a long-range reconnaissance flight.”

“It’s like we got the location of this side.”

Even if they did bomb, if it was a high-altitude horizontal bombing, the probability of getting hit was extremely rare. But being caught is something that can’t be overlooked.

“Notify the fleet. After 30 minutes, leave the sea area.”

I must leave here soon.

The mission starts now.

The same time as the repulse flyer prepares for normal destruction.

In the waters 70 nautical miles to the northeast, a destroyer carrying a Royal Navy flag was wading through the waves alone.

“Bunny! What do you see? Like a wake!”

“I don’t see any. There really is nothing!”

“Damn it, where did you go?”

The captain, ‘Philip E. Woodward’, who was scouring the waters as if gnashing his teeth, nervously grabbed his binoculars and gnashed his teeth.

The A-class destroyer he commanded, Acasta, was a new ship that had been commissioned less than two months ago.

It is one of the first ships of the Royal Navy’s next-generation destroyers, A and B-class, and of course, the equipment mounted is top-notch.

Except for one thing, a compass that has gone to taste.

“You can do it! Are there still problems?”

“Looks like it’s just over! I’m fed up!”

I asked about the whole castle view, but the answer that came back was still uncommunicative. Woodward clutched his forehead and groaned.

“My God… .”

He considered himself a good captain. He had both the ability to execute as a soldier and the recklessness necessary for a destroyer commander. But I never thought that all those conditions would lead to the worst outcome.

At least so far.

“Navigator, how far can we go considering the remaining fuel?”

The navigator, who had unfolded the now tattered chart, measured the distance again with tired eyes. Suddenly, a voice filled with loss came out.

“Assuming sailing at 12 knots… Going to Bermuda and drifting with about 80 miles to go.”

“I’m going crazy.”

In a word, there is no answer.

After receiving the order to disengage, Acasta ran a whopping 200 nautical miles at the engine’s full speed of 35 knots. It was only when dawn dawned and my eyesight opened that I slowed down, but by then it was already too late.

Not a single ship could be seen around.

“Look for any floats! Sound detective! No reaction to Sona?”

“It’s as quiet as a dead mouse.”

“I’d rather have a submarine, I don’t know. sh*t.”

It feels like being thrown into another dimension alone.

The captain thought so.

I wish I could figure out the location in the middle of the night, but it was hard to find the constellations in the cloudy sky. The compass became jammed at such a time.

The captain carried a small compass and radio waves to deduce the approximate location, but even this was not perfect. It was difficult to find a single float in the open sea.

That’s how I’ve been wandering the ocean until now.

The captain, who was struggling with biting his nails, seriously hesitated to break the wireless silence and send an SOS signal.

“Find the wake!”

“where are you?!”

As if meeting an angel, the captain turned his head in a cheery voice. Looking in the direction the watchman pointed, a really thick line was drawn on the sea.

“It is a wake of a large ship. It leads northwest.”

“The rendezvous point isn’t that way… is not it?”

“According to the last constellation I saw, it is correct that we should at least go west from here.”

“Damn, I should know what is what. I will follow you once.”

With half worry and half expectation, the captain gave the order. The lightweight player took a sharp turn.

Battleship North Carolina’s bridge was busy for the second time after the last fleet showdown. Admiral Taylor, stepping onto the sailing bridge as on the previous flagship Montana, crossed his arms with his brow furrowed uncharacteristically.

“So, you mean British battlecruisers showed up near New York?”

“Yes, it is said that the intercepting ground forces fired a number of hits… .”

The communications officer who was posting the report was speechless. The admiral couldn’t help but snort.

“I’d be glad if I hit even one shot.”

If, as they reported, the battlecruiser still maneuvers after being hit by 20 bombs, it would be a super-heavy battleship, not a battlecruiser.

So anyway, they’re not helpful. Same with this outing.

The Admiral sighed and shook his head.

“What about the reconnaissance plane report?”

“Not yet.”

“I don’t want to see anything like this.”

I answered nothing to the communication officer who tilted his head and kept his mouth shut.

You can’t show weakness in front of your subordinates. But inside, it was hard to let go of my heart.

A week ago, the Army requested that the Royal Navy be purged in order to launch another amphibious assault. However, the situation at sea was completely different while he and Montana were away.

The power gathered by the waking lion was equal to that before the decisive battle, and included three carriers.

Of course, Montana will join the ranks again in a week. A month later, Lexington will also be repaired. However, by that time, the UK will have more than enough to finish repairing the Nelson class and deploy the old-fashioned new battleships. After all, it is no different from the electricity cost before the declaration of war.

No, rather worse. This one lost a whopping 3 main battleships. Furthermore, the only aircraft carrier that can be deployed is a yard that has been borrowed to intercept enemy battlecruisers.

Thanks to this, there was not even a single fighter jet defending the airspace of the 11th Task Fleet.

‘Herbert… Isn’t that like f*cking me? You son of a b*tch!’

It may be rude to the deceased, but at the time, it was difficult to bear such thoughts.

I would rather have been there…

It was an admiral who couldn’t help but regret.

“Admiral, what do you want?”

“What do you mean?”

“We can’t leave the East Coast empty like this, can we?”

At the chief of staff’s question, he pursed his lips as if struggling. It’s a tough decision. As soon as the news was heard, the White House went into a rage and strictly ordered the East Coast to be defended.

In fact, it was natural for him to react like that.

As soon as rumors of the appearance of battlecruisers spread, the east coast became a mess.

The fleet was scattered, and the harbor was filled with evacuees. There were even cases where friendly ships on patrol were mistaken for British battlecruisers.

However, Admiral Taylor could not follow the order exactly.

When the main fleet moves south, the Boston area is exposed to attacks from the enemy main fleet.

Distributing capital ships just in case is an even worse choice. Just like the last Newfoundland naval battle, it only creates opportunities for individual defeat.

In the end, one thing has to be given up.

After pondering for a while, the admiral struggled to open his mouth.

“Trust me in Saratoga. The 17th Task Force will be reorganized as a Task Force as of the current time, and I will leave full authority to the Fleet Commander. Tell them to immediately move south along the East Coast and destroy the enemy task force.”

“But New Mexico is too slow. If it’s a flyer that includes battleships, you won’t be able to keep up with their speed.”

“I leave it to the judgment of the field commander. It is difficult for us to keep the enemy fleet in check.”

Saying that, Admiral Taylor took a deep breath. The sea where the waves crashed was too wide. In the yard where you don’t even know what’s out there, it was a harsh treatment to pay attention to the flyer that fell 200 nautical miles.

“Contact the East Coast Defense Command. Requesting cooperation from the submarine force. This requires an integrated solution from both forces.”

Having handed over the work to the staff headquarters, he closed his eyes tightly. It felt like fatigue was erupting from the bottom of my chin.

“You should trust Marshall.”

He pressed one hand to his eye and whispered.

Saratoga’s bridge was as busy as the deck. After that night of absurdly missing an enemy ship, Marshall’s planting of the flyer leader was unprecedentedly unpleasant.

“If there is such a thing as destiny, I want to beat the child who created it to death. Especially if it’s that damned battlecruiser.”

The admiral lowered his binoculars and said so. Of course, no one on the bridge bothered to ask what the battlecruiser was.

Rinaun-class battlecruiser.

The damned battlecruiser, already looking at its 20-year-old ship, always blocked their path.

Even in the last fleet battle, and the night before yesterday.

Looking at the deck ready for takeoff, Admiral Marshall gave the order as if gnashing his teeth.

“Send out all the reconnaissance planes! We’re heading south at full speed ahead of New Mexico! Hurry!”

“Admiral, it is dangerous without a capital ship escort.”

The chief of staff replied with disapproval. But Marshall shook his head, not caring.

“It doesn’t matter. If they approach you, just run away. I mean, it’s important to somehow hold on to my ankles now.”

After a while, he looked up at the clear sky where the sunlight was pouring in and continued.

“The weather does not interfere with the operation of the aircraft at all. Perhaps this battle can be ended with aircraft alone.”

Excluding New Mexico, it is a flyer with virtually no artillery warfare capability. Keeping distance is not an option, it is a necessity.

But he had other thoughts. Clearly, this situation is a crisis. However, it is also an opportunity to bring out the battle aspects that have only been conceived in the head into reality.

An ultra-long-distance naval battle involving only aircraft. The dream of all naval airmen.

He secretly raised the corner of his mouth.

“Then where… Shall we avenge the battle last year?”

Let’s see how far the British aircraft carriers can go. With that resolution in mind, the admiral watched the biplane take off with the sound of a propeller. Canvas wings fluttered up in the blue sky.